read "golf is not a game of perfect" by bob rotella for great advice on the mental aspect of golf, life, etc.
A couple other good books for those so inclined:
Inner Game of Golf
Mental Toughness training For Sports by Loerer
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read "golf is not a game of perfect" by bob rotella for great advice on the mental aspect of golf, life, etc.
Ok here's another one for you. This one is a breathing exercise.
I talked a little about distraction management. It's easy to talk about – but not so easy to practice. But there are some really simple things you can do to SET yourself and be relaxed before executing a throw. This technique can be used for any throw also – but it's easiest to explain in relation to putting.
As you approach your lie, it's important to be relaxed so that you can focus and execute. So as you get your feet set, and go through whatever motions you go through – preparing to let fly – take a nice deep breath and let it all the way out. Take that breath and blow it out all the way through your feet. Essentially this first breath grounds you – it gets you settled into your stance (so do it slowly). Take one (or sometimes two) more deep breaths, and use your breathing as a rhythm. Your putt is going to be all the way at the bottom of your breath. Like exhaling when you are lifting weights – that last push is the last of your breath. The end of the breath is your putt leaving your hand.
This method is especially helpful if you ever feel yourself rushed during putting, or if for some reason you felt as if your timing was off. A lot of times that sense is created by you breathing IN instead of OUT. It's really that simple – your timing was off because you never set the putting action to any sort of body routine. This breathing exercise is THE EASIEST way to get that rhythm in place, and it's easy to reproduce.
Best of all, this simple form of relaxation also helps you clear your head (i.e. remove yourself from the end result), as it gives you a very basic element to concentrate on that has nothing to do with that little voice in your head and the instructions he is so fond of giving. It also imparts a simple kind of cadence to your throwing motion, which then becomes an inherent element of the consistency you strive for from one shot to the next.
I once taught this exercise to a lady golfer by the name of Suzanne Giendl from Austria. She and I were staying at a mutual friend's house for 91 Worlds in Dayton, OH. She had been having all sorts of putting issues prior to and during day 1 of the tournament. Once she learned how to breathe – all of her natural talents shone through – she took 2nd place at Worlds that year - and thanked me for my guidance at the awards ceremony. Pretty cool ay? Give it a try – you'll be surprised how simple it is.
my latest advice, listen to craigg! haha
he is 100% correct about taking yourself out of the end result and letting your skills that you already have do the work
also, you have to keep your emotions in check - a lot of people get mad/frustrated about a bad shot or string of bad shots, but you have to let it go by the time you arrive at the next hole - getting mad/frustrated certainly won't help you play any better, which I've learned from experience!
Ex: tonight at league, on a course I normally average 10-11 down on, I was struggling, and on hole 7 took a 6 that put me at 2 up... in the past that would have been the end of my round, but I took deep breaths and shifted my focus to the remaining holes - went on to birdie the next 4 holes and 8 of the last 11 to finish 6 down (still a below average round, but could have been much worse)